DOVER — The U.S. Department of Justice is considering whether to change the application process for gun buyers who register their weapons through trusts, corporations and other legal entities.

Buying a gun that falls under the purview of the National Firearms Act — such as a machine gun — requires prior approval from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Applicants are required to fill out paperwork and submit recent photographs and duplicate fingerprint cards to the ATF.

They must also get permission from the chief law enforcement officer in the area where they reside. The signature is intended to certify that local police have no information indicating it would be illegal for the applicant to own a firearm, or that the applicant would use the firearm for “other than lawful purposes.”

However, some of these requirements are lifted for gun buyers who purchase weapons in the name of legal entities, rather than as individuals.

When a legal entity registers a weapon, the requirements to submit fingerprints and photographs to the ATF are waived. Applicants are also not required to seek consent from a law enforcement official in the area.

“Trusts and corporations are very good — trusts particularly, because it allows you to estate plan for your purchase,” said Concord attorney Evan Nappen.

Nappen works with clients to establish so-called “NFA gun trusts.” He said law enforcement officials are sometimes a barrier to owning NFA firearms. The problem has “plagued” the ATF, Nappen said, because federal law does not provide any means to appeal a law enforcement officer’s decision.

When registering as a legal entity, gun buyers are instead required to provide the ATF with copies of partnership agreements, articles of incorporation, corporate registrations and other legal documents that prove the existence of the entity.

If the firearm being purchased is a machine gun, short-barreled rifle, short-barreled shotgun, or a weapon classified as a “destructive device,” and it’s being purchased from a licensed firearms dealer, a person authorized to act on behalf of the legal entity must also fill out a “Transferee’s Certification” for the ATF.

The certification requires the person to provide their full name, and to describe the “reasonable necessity” the legal entity named on the paperwork has to own the firearm.

Gun dealers who sell NFA weapons to legal entities aren’t required to run a background check on anyone affiliated with the organization until after the application is approved by the ATF.

Only the person who picks up the firearm from the dealer on behalf of the legal entity is required to undergo a criminal-background check, according to information contained in an ATF handbook regarding the National Firearms Act.

In December, the Department of Justice announced it is studying whether to amend the regulations for legal entities.

A DOJ spokesman familiar with the proposal was not available to comment on it this week. Documents available online indicate the proposed rule change would more narrowly define who the “responsible person” for a legal entity applying for an NFA weapon is.

DOJ also wants to add a new requirement for each responsible person at a corporation, trust or legal entity to fill out a background form and submit photographs and fingerprints to ATF.

The proposal would also entirely eliminate the requirement for a law enforcement officer to sign off on NFA weapon transfer applications. Instead, all applications would simply be forwarded to local police.